Effects of functional traits of perennial ryegrass cultivars on forage quality in mixtures and pure stands

Abstract

Plant breeding has brought about improvements in the herbage yield potential, forage quality and functional traits of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). Under conditions of low external inputs, grassland swards based on perennial ryegrass often contain dicotyledonous species (legume and non-legume). Cultivar-specific functional traits such as growth form or phenology affect the competitive ability and yield in mixtures, but the extent to which cultivars with different functional traits affect forage quality in mixtures compared with pure stands is unknown. Therefore, we analysed four perennial ryegrass cultivars, each representing a combination of two functional traits with respect to phenology (early v. late heading) and growth form (upright v. prostrate) on forage quality, in a field experiment over 5 years. Each cultivar was grown in binary-mixtures with Trifolium repens L., as four-species mixtures with Taraxacum officinale L. and Plantago lanceolata L., and as grass monocultures. The effect of functional traits was dominant in the primary growth and persisted in pure stands but not in the mixtures from the third year onwards. Prostrate cultivars allowed the development of a greater proportion of clover and forbs within the mixtures, resulting in increased protein and energy and reduced fibre contents. In mixtures, forage quality was generally higher in the last regrowth. In conclusion, the indirect effects of growth form on forage quality due to modifications of botanical composition were more important than direct effects on forage quality.

How Does Nitrogen Application Rate Affect Plant Functional Traits and Crop Growth Rate of Perennial Ryegrass-Dominated Permanent Pastures?

“…Quantitative analyses of PFTs at sward and plant level are lacking in frequently defoliated pastures. Previous studies analysing PFTs in managed grasslands are limited to a comparison of grass species [18,19], the general importance of PFTs for grassland ecology and ecosystems [20,21], or focus on single individual PFTs such as TD [22] or the effect of PFTs on forage quality [23]. Furthermore, the effect of N application rate on the expression and development of PFTs in grass swards were rarely studied.…”

Sustainability of Lolium multiflorum L. “Ecotype Cajamarquino”, Associated with Trifolium repens L., at Three Harvest Times in the Northern Highlands of Peru

“…Table 1 shows the highest biomass yield per cut at 60 days (5511.26 kg DM ha −1 ), followed by grazing frequencies at 45 days and 30 days with 3991 kg DM ha −1 and 2531.20 kg ha −1 respectively, thus confirming the excellent production generated by the association of these pastures coupled with the frequency of grazing [6][7][8]10]. The results obtained exceed the amounts found by Egan et al (2018) [6], Rojas et al (2016) [27] and López et al (2021) [26], probably due to the different times at which the cuts or grazing were carried out, as well as the physicochemical and biological characteristics of the soil [11,35].…”

“…Italian ryegrass-white clover pastures, introduced in the northern highlands of Peru from 1950 onwards, still constitute the basis of the diet of dairy cattle, the main economic activity of the rural population in this area. This grass-legume association, characterised by complementing each other very well in terms of yield and nutritional value [6][7][8], has remained in most of the farms in this area for several decades, without being renewed, and is therefore considered a perennial life cycle grass and identified as Lolium multiflorum L. "cajamarquino ecotype". The adaptation and persistence of this grass in the northern highlands of Peru is due to the low frequency of grazing or cutting that is practised, which is done during the reproductive stage.…”

Consórcio de azevém (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) com leguminosas na porção pampeana do Rio Grande do Sul: uma revisão de literatura

“…Ao encontro disso, maiores teores de proteína bruta (PB) foram encontrados em consórcios que continham "azevém + leguminosa" na comparação com gramíneas sem a presença de leguminosas (e.g., Skonieski et al (2011) O consórcio de "azevém + leguminosa", segundo os resultados acima mostrados, pode empregado objetivando aumentar os índices de produtividade forrageira do sistema. A associação de leguminosas forrageiras com gramíneas hibernais pode aumentar o teor de proteína, reduzindo a necessidade de fertilizantes nitrogenados e aumentando o tempo de utilização da pastagem (Finn et al, 2013;Komainda & Isselstein, 2020). É necessário, porém, considerar a sazonalidade da produção das espécies utilizadas, onde indivíduos do gênero Vicia são mais precoces (Ferreira et al, 2017); espécies de Trifolium possuem maior produção durante o período hiberno-primaveril (Skonieski et al, 2011;Ferreira et al, 2017); e espécies dos gêneros Arachis e Lotus são estivais (Soster et al, 2004;Skonieski et al, 2011).…”